Update: Polygon reports that a "reporting party" told responding San Francisco police "an employee made a threat towards his employer using social media.” According to the police, the employee who allegedly made the threats works in an office outside of California.
Following the announcement of a controversial new policy just two days ago, which would see video game developers stung with a fee depending on how many times a game has been installed, Unity CEO John Riccitiello has cancelled a planned town hall meeting with employees after the company received what was described as a credible death threat. As an extra precaution, offices in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco were closed.
Jason Schreier of Bloomberg reports that Unity Technologies was "made aware of a potential threat to some of our offices" and that the company has "taken immediate and proactive measures to ensure the safety of our employees", according to a spokesperson. Unity Technologies is "fully cooperating with law enforcement.”
Schreier states that the threat or threats haven't yet been verified, only that Unity has closed multiple offices today and cancelled the planned town hall meeting. This is the video game industry, however, and sadly, it was likely only a matter of time until someone crossed the line. Regardless of how tone-deaf or disruptive a company's decision-making is, threatening the physical safety of its employees is entirely unacceptable.